Charles Numrich Creative Theatre Unlimited PO Box 14118 Saint Paul MN 55114-0118 (651) 698-2309 Work Samples Video: video clip 1 (higher bandwidth, DSL, ISDN, T1) video clip 1 (lower bandwidth, 56K) To view the work samples, Windows Media Player is required. If you do not have it installed, you can download it for free here: Download Windows Media Player

Creative Theatre Unlimited Hmong performance Creative Theatre Unlimited presents music, storytelling, and dance in Hmong and English. As the Hmong become more and more a part of mainstream life in the United States, their traditional art forms continue to have great significance. The stories, music, dance, and handcrafts of this ancient culture provide excellent introductions for the broader community, and for the Hmong, a means to preserve this heritage in this country. Performances feature master musician and storyteller Xeng Sue Yang and presenter Charles Numrich. Shows are appropriate for all ages and adaptable to any setting. Available: Dates and times to be negotiated; mileage charged over and above fees for programs presented outside the Twin Cities metro area Space: Performance requires a stage or performance area at least eight by eight ft., a sound system with two microphones (for larger spaces), two chairs, and a small table; exhibit requirements include tables for craft display and projection screen for slides. Fee: Negotiable

Additional Information:
Creative Theatre Unlimited presents Hmong culture through storytelling, music, and dance.

Traditional Hmong culture has never developed a written language. As a result, stories have always been vital forentertainment, instruction, and the passing down of history. Storytelling has long been an important art in Hmong communities. The performances of Creative Theatre Unlimited provide the broader community with an excellent introduction to Hmong culture, and they also help to introduce Hmong young people to traditions that have become far less common here.

Charles Numrich founded Creative Theatre Unlimited in South Florida as a project to assist local immigrant and refugee groups through the arts. When he moved to the Twin Cities in 1983, he turned his focus toward Hmong culture. Thousands of Hmong refugees had moved to Minnesota in the late 1970s, but few resources existed to help the local community to become familiar with their traditions. In the years since that time, Creative Theatre Unlimited has collected traditional folktales, song and personal histories from many Hmong people in the United States. Xeng Sue Yang, a master musician and storyteller, has worked extensively with the project. He and Charles Numrich have also traveled to Hmong communities in the People's Republic of China and Thailand in order to learn more about the ancient history and current life of this culture.

The group's performances feature music, dance, and stories performed by Xeng Sue Yang, sometimes in collaboration with other Hmong performers. Charles Numrich, the group's presenter, provides important background information on these pieces, and helps the audience to understand these art forms as windows into Hmong history and culture. Performances typically feature the qeej(pronounced "kaang"), a reed instrument incorporating several bamboo pipes, which is one of the most widely used Hmong instruments. Xeng Sue Yang also plays the full range of traditional Hmong folk instruments, including flutes; the bowed, 2-stringed xim xis; and the ncaas, a brass mouth harp. The performers typically tell stories in English, although Hmong-language performances can be arranged. The group's shows are appropriate for all ages, and can be adapted to any setting.